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Wanderlei Silva gives his thoughts on Liddell/Rua

Sherdog.comís Gleidson Venga spoke with Wanderlei Silva last week about his UFC 99 matchup with Rich Franklin, but some material didnít make the story. Here it is now: Silva discusses training with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and breaks down the April 18 Shogun-Liddell bout.

Sherdog.com: Your friend Mauricio "Shogun" Rua will face Chuck Liddell next month. What do you expect from this fight?
Silva: It will be a very important fight for Shogun. It will be a watershed for him. Probably for both, because Liddell has the rope around his neck. I have seen some statements by the boss [Dana White] saying that he could fire him. I do not know if he would, but he did say. The [word] around here on Liddell is that he got married, doesnít hang out at night anymore and goes from home to the gym and from the gym to home. It seems that he is training like a madman. I hope that Shogun is preparing well.

I talked a lot with [Shogun], love him. Thatís what I told him: Liddell is not Coleman. He is an aggressive guy, has heavy hands and does not give up. If he hits you on the chin, probably a KO. Shogun has a very aggressive style and has to be in very good shape, with much cardio, because he doesnít stop. He goes with punches, kicks, knees and takedowns. With him thereís no asking to stop. So he has to give good attention to the cardio because his style requires much cardio. He is a very talented guy, but age comes for everyone, including him. Then with time he will realize that nowadays we Ö must have a higher preparation. The guys are always getting better here. Shogun is a guy who can win the belt soon. He is in the front of the line. I believe in him. I think heíll have a great performance against Liddell. I would not be surprised if he knocks him out or submits him. If he gets a takedown, I think it ends in the second round by submission.

Whilst it's clear Silva favors Rua over Liddell, they are friends afterall, but he does come off as unbias. He put forward scenerios of how either fighter could beat the other. I think that besides being a fan of Silva the fighter, I'm more a fan of Silva the person. A very straight forward & humble guy. That said, I'm going with his prediction. However, that "hit you on the chin, probably a KO" statement, isn't that far fetched, because it's quite accurate. In the end, I'm hoping for a 3 round war. Highly doubt that, though.

WAR RUA!

Originally Posted by Joe Lauzon

"Guillard is like, 'Oh, Joe didn't beat me. I beat myself.'" "No, I smacked you in the face with my fist, and you went down and I choked you. I'm pretty sure i'm taking credit for that."

Originally Posted by King Mo

"It's funny how some fans wanna be PC and shit, but then some of these same muthafuckaz wanna pay to see some organized violence. LOL! Or they boo if a fight ain't violent enough. LOL!"